Dont Be Afraid
by KiaraExodus
Summary: Selfer. Does Seifer finally become the man he was destined to be? Will Selphie finally let go of her flaky whims and become the strong minded woman she so desperately wants to be?
1. Chapter 1

Irritated and irked he jumped from his bed with a groan. Something beyond his control was happening.

He couldnt stand that.

Pushing the thought to one side in his mind, he fully stretched once releasing all his muscles from the feeling of tenseness and anxiety and rubbed his eyes. Walking over toward the bathroom, he stopped and glanced out of the window, noting it was still dark.

"Lovely. Still awake at this ungodly hour." he murmured looking over to his alarm clock which read 3.45am on the LED display.

Entering the bathroom, he peered in the mirror. He stood straight, his 6ft 2ins slender muscular frame reflecting back at him in the long mirror. His impeccable slicked back blond hair was now ruffled and unruly, much the same as his personality. He was thinking about having a shave as he noticed the stubble infecting his perfect features. His eyes, deep green were staring back at him from the reflection in the mirror. "I wonder what its like to be that side of the mirror" he wondered, and then mentally gave himself a ticking off for being stupid.

He kept looking at himself. As if he was searching for an answer to a question which only he knew. He had a scar running downward on his forehead from the beginning of his hairline to the beginning of his nose. This was gained in a fight between himself and his rival a few years back when they were both training to become part of a military group called SeeD, created by a sorceress to protect orphans from when she reached the time when she would become a fully fledged sorceress capable of killing and destruction. It didn't work out for Seifer Almasy. He became the Sorceress' Knight. A lapdog doing all her dirty work in the sorceress war a couple of years back. His rival, Squall - whom he grew up with, and trained with, managed to save the world from her clutches, and stop Seifer from turning into something that he would never return from. For which he would always be grateful, but never show it.

"They said we hated each other, but it was never like that" he blurted out. It was true. They never hated each other. They had very different outlooks on life, were two very different boys who had grown into men with different ideals and different ways. Seifer never understood how Squall could ignore things, dismiss things as if they weren't even there. Squall never understood how Seifer could never read between the lines, always see things in black and white. Squall disliked the bully boy tactics Seifer had grown accustomed to, for instance another orphan who lived with them and went to the same classes as them called Zell Dincht was weaker than the two. Seifer sniffed that out immediately, and therefore bullied him. Well - Zell was a tell tale. That was always Seifer's excuse.

Seifer disliked the fact that Squall was favored by a bigger child than them both who was the eldest of the orphans. Her name was Ellone, and all the children called her Sis. She always spent the most time with Squall. He wanted her all to himself. And one day, she went missing. Squall had never recovered. Seifer watched him, day after day - night after night. "Where's Sis?" Squall would cry out. To be answered by the sorceress who at the time was called Matron by the children: "She has had to go somewhere important, Squall."

It was the same story. Squall pining, Seifer bullying.

In time, they hit puberty. Inevitable as are all things growing. Their other friends at the orphanage: Selphie Tilmitt, a bright and cheery young woman, who wore short skirts, had hair that flicked out at the end and was quite small and petite in size. Irvine Kinneas, a cocky young long haired lad with a penchant for cowboy gear, girls and guns. Zell Dincht, the bullied one who owned spiky blond hair, a tattoo on his face and liked to wear funky clothes also liked to learn and liked to punch the air a lot. And Quistis Trepe. Nobody could deny she was beautiful. She was admired by all. Tall, long legged and slim, with fiery red hair and piercing blue eyes. She had a fanclub who swore to die to protect her, The Trepies.

Seifer knew that Quistis had a thing for Squall. And that had hurt a bit. Nobody could say Squall was not good looking. He was 5'8" tall, slim in build, wore mostly black, with three belts that were sort of a fashion statement. His hair was brown and it spiked up. He had a scar in the same place as Seifer, only slanting toward the right whereas Seifer's was to the left. His browny blue eyes spoke volumes, because Squall never liked to speak. He kept things held inside. "Too bad" Seifer thought. "She never got a piece of the Almasy legend". He grinned. She never got a piece of the Squall legend either. For there were things that happened that changed both of their lives.

Enter Rinoa.

Black haired, brown eyed, small in stature, she was beautiful, but not as in Quistis' stunningly beautiful way. The daughter of General Caraway, a famous General who ran the Galbadian Army and Julia Heartilly, a famous musician, Rinoa Heartilly's beauty spoke volumes. She never noted her good looks as being an advantage to herself. She never noted herself as good looking.

Rinoa was the type of girl who had the knack to look past the appearances, filter out all the expectations of looks. She had the ability to see right into your heart. And that is what enchanted Seifer to her when he first met her. They dated a while. He helped her to enlist the help of SeeD, who she wanted to help to free her town and make them independent again. Squall was incharge of the mission. He also fell enchanted, and she brought him out of his shell. Seifer wasn't angry in the least, he knew it would happen. After all, he was never in love with her, he just admired her for her qualities. She was an amazing woman. And it was never destined to be.

Rinoa had aquired sorceress powers in the war. Sorceress Edea was saved and could live her life dedicated to the children and her husband, Cid who owned and was also headmaster at the SeeD base called Balamb Garden. Cid faced many hard choices in his life, and always made the right decision. He was a good man. He loved Edea more than anything in the world, and yet he was faced with the decision to kill her if she became too much of a threat to the children and SeeD. Thankfully, that never happened.


	2. Chapter 2

Ch 2: Meetings.

I forgot to put the disclaimer on :oops:

Disclaimer: I own Final Fantasy 8 as in the game. I dont own the rights or characters to it because I am too poor to buy them. So you big execs can just pee off now.

Seifer finished shaving. Putting down the razor, and walking back into his bedroom he noted the time again. 4.02am.

"These memory lane trips always screw me" He realised that he was talking to fresh air, and that it couldn't answer him back, and upon realising that he shook his head and rubbed his now smooth face.

He walked over to his wardrobe, surprisingly light footed for a man of his tall frame. Selecting his favorite garments was almost like a ritual. Changing his blue boxer shorts to black ones, slipping over his head a dark blue vest-waistcoast with a white cross, pulling up black trousers and fastening the zipper with one swift movement. The look suited him, but it was not yet finished. Wandering over to his bedside drawer he picked up his dogtag necklace, he had owned it since the day he was given it at the age of 5 by Matron. She told him it belonged to his father, who he never knew. Both of his parents had died 2 years into Seifer's life. He barely remembered the people that looked after him before going to the orphanage. He knew that one of them was his mothers sister. He figured that the man must have been her husband. Matron had told him, years later that his mothers sister and her husband had been caught trying to steal from the rich people from the city of Galbadia. Their penalty was execution.

Shaking his head once more, he moved over to his wardrobe again, reaching for his black soldier boots. He slipped them on and began to tie the laces. Once done, he walked over to the door and took his prized trenchcoat off its hook. It was grey, with red Fire-crosses down the arms, and he put that on. Last thing to get was his weapon.

A Gunblade.

Both Seifer and Squall were Gunblade experts. Hence the only rivalry within SeeD. There were no more Gunblade experts to train with. They had both named their weapons. Seifer had named his Hyperion. It was black, slender and long. The top of the gunblade was a gun, joined to a sword, so the two merged. Hence the name "Gunblade". His was a little heavier than Squall's who called his Lionheart.

Seifer was skilled, quick and agile with his use of the blade. Squall was more trained, defensive and idle. He let his blade do the work while Seifer almost danced with his. Two complete opposites, obtaining the same goal. They were both trained to kill.

He grabbed his keys, and trotted outside into Balamb Garden. A rounded path enveloped his eyesight. He began to walk, a little more heavyfooted this time. Not surprisingly some people were like himself, awake and about, the training center was open, and Seifer decided to have a little fun.

Quickening his pace a little, he walked toward the training center. Looking behind him, he glanced at a girl who was walking away from him. "Hm. She thinks she is something" he said aloud. And then it came. He walked straight into her, knocking her down.

"Yeeeeeeeeeeow" She squealed, rubbing her leg. "Watch it, you big meanie."

Recognising the voice, he didnt even have to look down at her. "Gawd..." he retaliated, then he looked down. "Messenger Girl. Well, are you going to apologise for knocking into me?" He mused, his arrogance shining through once again.

"Huh?" she stood without help, dusting down her short skirt which Seifer could only help noticing "Yeah right Almasy. Well, thanks for the help"

"You're welcome, Selphie. And next time, be careful of who you run into. I may not be so nice again" He kept his grin to himself for now.

She brazenly stood with her hands on her hips. "Oh, and I guess thats supposed to scare me, Mister I-Am-So-Big-I-Scare-Myself? You know what, get a different routine, Seifer. Its getting kind of boring."

"Yeah, alright. I'll do that when you grow up." He said, knowing this would bring out a reaction.

"HUH? THATS NOT..."

"Say fair Selphie, and you'll really be showing your age." He let a grin play across his face.

"Well, old timer - you are a full year older than me. You cant talk" She snorted.

"And experienced too" He said, thinking that this girl infront of him had grew a mouth.

"HYNE. GET A LIFE, PLEASE." She was losing her patience with him now.

"Say, Is Irvine Kinneas still doing his 'ride em cowgirl' imitations?" Cocking his head to one side, slight sarcasm in his tone.

"You leave Irvy alone. He's done nothing wrong." She defended.

"Yeah, alright." He smirked.

"Besides, its over between him and I. He's just a friend now." Her tone became serious.

He looked at her for a moment. He read sadness in her eyes. And he felt strange. Selphie looked up at him, her big green eyes staring at him for a moment. So vunerable, alone.

He looked away. What the hell was happening? This was making him uncomfortable. "Say something, Tilmitt."

She coughed. "Wanna go train with me?"

"Sure, messenger girl. I'll train with you, just stand back and watch the man in action." His accent changed to movie-reeltone-announcer, and she let out a giggle.

"Yeah, alright Almasy. Lets go."

"After you."

He watched her walk for a moment, wondering why the hell he was doing so. Her tempting short skirt sashaying as she walked, giving him just a glimpse of a bit of leg most people would never see could be the answer.

But it wasn't and he knew it.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I'm broke, so I dont own Squaresoft or any of its characters. Capisce?**

**Author Comments: Guys, its my first fanfic. I'm trying! I hope its not too rubbish!**

Seifer blinked as he opened his eyes. "A fresh morning" he muttered and then surveyed his surroundings.

He waited a few seconds before he could register what he was seeing, and feeling. He felt absolutely knocked for six. His mouth was dry. This was not familiar territory. This wasn't his dormitory.

The sound of a female voice singing had provided him with more clues.

"Where the HELL am I?" Almost spitting out the words, like he wanted to make sure that this was not some kind of dream. Or nightmare.

Pushing the thought to one side, he tossed off the bedspread. "NAKED? NAKED?" He pulled the bedspread back over him as he heard approaching footsteps. Well, maybe this person was the answer to all his questions.

"Good morning, Almasy. I took the liberty of making breakfast" Selphie looked down at the bewildered looking Seifer, and held out a tray with both arms. "Here, you have eggs, and sausages, bacon, toast, hash browns..."

"Se-lph-ie. Uhmm" He groaned, barely understanding himself.

"Yeah, Selphie. Thats me. Now, take this. My arms are killing me." She shoved the tray back into his face.

He reached up, gingerly taking the tray with its contents from her and placed it on his lap. With his head firmly looking toward the floor he managed a quick thanks, and began to eat. Selphie stood watching for a moment, with a stupid smirk written on her face, and then left the room to leave Seifer to his own devices.

He rushed the food, as if it were dangerous and was going to come alive at any moment. His mind raced, taking chicanes and corners like nobody's business. A multitude of thoughts were jamming up his head and he felt like exploding, but instead he placed the now empty tray and plate on the floor.

"Clothes" He suddenly spoke. "I need my clothes. But...where are they." Looking around, he found nothing in his line of vision.

"CRAP. I need to get Selphie to come in here, fetch me my clothes and tell me what the hell happened, without me sounding like a complete loser" Seifer was beginning to grow a little agitated.

He scanned the room once more. "Hmm..." he mumbled. "Empty tray, empty plate, no cup..." thinking to himself that was the perfect way out. After all, he had a rep to live up to.

"TILMITT...WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? DO I GET A DRINK OR NOT?" He shouted, hoping that this would elicit a response.

"SORRRRREEEEEEEEE" She shouted back, poured him a coffee from the coffee machine and brought it in, handing it to him.

"Bout time, messenger girl." Seifer snorted and relieved her of the full cup.

"Yeah, yeah. All talk..." She retorted, her nostrils flaring a little because of her sudden annoyance.

He took a sip from the coffee cup. "I reckon I'll get up and let you to your business. Er...where'd I leave my stuff again." He asked, sneakily.

"There". She pointed to a chair that Seifer hadn't noticed and they were piled up on there.

"Good." He replied, noting that the clothes were not neatly folded as he did himself, but strewn over the chair. Selphie picked up on this.

"Memories coming back now, Seif. What fun we had on that chair, hm?" She grinned at him, knowingly.

He arched an eyebrow. "We did? We did. Yeah." He incoherently muttered back at her but she managed to understand.

"Oh yeah, and it was fun. But the best part was OVER the chair, Seifer. You were SO good. Mindblowing."

He failed to reply. He just managed a weak smirk, and twitched his bottom lip a little.

"Infact..." She removed a strap from her top down her arm, "I want to do it again..." She looked him in the eye, "...On the balcony...NOW."

Raising his eyebrow high enough for his scar to itch he wondered if he should just call her bluff, and get out of bed completely naked. Full glory showing. Instead, in a rare moment of vunerability he merely exclaimed "Hooooo...mmmmmph" He was totally disorientated now.

She laughed out loud. "Oh don't flatter yourself, Seifer. I was just kidding. But we did have a lot of fun last night. We trained, and trained some more then we went out to the city and had a lot of drinks in a lot of bars. But it was real fun, the most I've had EVER."

"We did?" He asked, feeling slighly more than slightly embarrassed.

"Yeah. We did." She replied. "You'll remember it once the the effects of that Moonshine wear off. But for now, get up, get showered and dressed. We have a mission today. Hurry"

"Alright. So, we never...did anything?" He asked her, wanting to clarify it.

"Not in that sense, Seifer darling. NOW HURRY".

She left the room and closed the door behind her. Seifer once more watching her go. He shook his head at it all, relieved.

But the contrasting feeling of disappointment would not shake.


End file.
